Plot Twist
by J.R.R. Not-Tolkien
Summary: It's funny what love can do. It can affect people for good . . . or for evil. And when someone knows how to twist it to their advantage, there's no telling what someone will do to protect someone they care for deeply. That can change the plot of a story very quickly.
1. Prologue: Watching and Waiting

**Okay, so this is an older story that I began writing shortly after I finished watching Rebooted, which at the time was my favorite season.**

 **The chapters are a lot shorter than you'd expect from me, and that's because they're fine without any edits, no matter how short they are.**

 **The original version in Google Docs has different fonts for the different characters, but they won't show up here. Dang it. XD**

 **Well, I hope y'all enjoy this! And since I've got most of the beginning parts written out, I'll be able to update this quickly for a while.**

* * *

Jay slipped through the darkened streets of New Ninjago City. In his dark blue Techno gi, he was almost impossible to spot in the inky blackness of night

Unfortunately, he was _almost_ impossible to spot. A Nindroid sentry, hidden with a cloaking device, had seen him. The Nindroid managed to tail Jay for three alley-lengths, then got close enough to sling a tracking device onto Jay's foot. Then he let him go.

* * *

Once Jay was out of earshot, the sentry sent a video report to the Overlord, now the Golden Master. "I have tagged one of the Ninja, Master," he reported.

"Which one?" the Golden Master hissed.

"The one in blue, designated Jay," the sentry said.

"Excellent," the Overlord cackled. "General Cryptor, set all security cameras in the city on him, then send a security squad to give him a proper welcome to my new domain."

The Nindroid general saluted, then repeated the orders to his troops stationed in their headquarters. They scurried to do his bidding. "If I may be so bold," Cryptor said, "why do you take such an interest in this Jay? I have encountered him before, and he is not as much of a problem as Lloyd or Cole."

"Because his mind is divided," the Overlord replied smoothly. "After my little trick with the 'Perfect Match' console, he feels enmity toward Cole, and he also worries that the girl Nya cares more for Cole than for him. I will use those feelings to my advantage."

"Excellent plan, Master!"

The Overlord cackled gleefully. "I know. I know."


	2. 1: Caught and Contemplating

**Hiya! Got the official first chappie up! (Yeah, the first chapter was the prologue, technically.)**

 **Thanks so much for your guys' support! Three reviews already! Woo! (okay, maybe I'm makin' a mountain out of a molehill, but I'm actually really happy about that :D)**

 **NerdyJD: I'll do my best not to do that to Cole. I might unintentionally do that, but I'll try not to.**

 **SwimmerNinja13: I go on a website called Rinmaru, and the official game is Mega Anime Avatar Creator! I'll put the link on my profile so you can find it easily! :D**

 **Sorry if this is a crummy chapter; it's hard trying to figure out where to divide the original story into chapters, since all I did was do line breaks for the original story XD**

 **Hope y'all enjoy!**

* * *

Jay suddenly got a nagging suspicion that someone was watching, or following, him. _With the cloaking devices those tin can Nindroids got,_ he thought, _they could be right behind me and I wouldn't notice._

Boy, was he right. Before he could take another step, a strong metal arm clamped around his neck, and a razor-sharp katana was pressed lightly to his head. Startled, Jay didn't struggle until it was too late. "Don't make a move, ninja," a metallic voice warned.

"Give me a good reason not to," Jay retorted, trying to cover up his panic.

"That sword might cut a little closer," the Nindroid replied. "A little closer to your neck."

"Okay, good reason." The Nindroids bound Jay's arms to his sides with strong metal ropes. Jay realized he was completely surrounded by a good-sized sentry squad, 10 Nindroids. He could barely stand a chance against 1 Nindroid, much less 10. "What do you want? I'm sure we could have a much more comfortable discussion if I wasn't tied up."

"Ha, ha," a Nindroid laughed mirthlessly. "The Golden Master would like to give you a proper welcome to his territory."

" _His_ territory?" Jay scoffed. "I'll believe it when I see claim posts around New Ninjago City with his name on it."

The squad commander shot Jay an exasperated look. "Someone please shut him up," he ordered.

A Nindroid produced a roll of duct tape from his arm, and taped a square of it over Jay's mouth.

The squad commander sent a video report back to General Cryptor. "We have caught the ninja Jay, General."

"Bring him back to headquarters," Cryptor ordered. "The Golden Master would like to have a word with him."

Once the report was finished, the commander told his squadron, "Make formation around the prisoner, and hold his shoulders firm."

The 10 Nindroids made marching formation around Jay, and the two strongest ones caught him by the shoulders. Jay tried to yell for help, but the duct tape over his mouth muffled his shouts. He was marched down the street toward the Overlord's headquarters, formerly the Borg Industries building.

* * *

The squadron arrived at the building in 15 minutes. Jay had been knocked out with a tranquilizer because he was struggling too hard for the squad commander's liking. Unconscious, he was rebound with tight chains, and the duct tape was peeled away from his mouth. General Cryptor himself took Jay from the squadron, and gently revived him.

"You didn't harm him, did you?" Cryptor's voice was stern. "You know the Master specifically requested for Jay to be unharmed."

"I don't recall us being on a first-name basis yet," Jay muttered groggily, blinking the sleep out of his eyes and yawning.

The squad commander shook his head violently. "No, General, he is completely unharmed, apart from the tranquilizer," he stammered.

The general nodded briskly. "You are dismissed. I'll take the prisoner from here."

"Excuse me?" Jay was more alert, and slightly irritated. "I said we weren't on a first-name basis, not on _that_ kind of basis."

"Then what _should_ I call you?" Cryptor snapped, exasperated.

"How about just 'the ninja'?" Jay suggested sarcastically.

Cryptor nodded begrudgingly. He secretly was amazed at how well Jay covered up his feelings with his personality, even in life-or-death situations. _If everything goes according to plan,_ he thought, _he won't need to hide his feelings much longer._

* * *

Cryptor marched Jay into the elevator, and hit the hundredth-floor dial. "What would the Overlord-"

"Golden Master," Cryptor corrected him.

"Whatever, the ' _Golden Master_ ' want with me? To be completely honest, I'm probably not as important to him as Lloyd or Co-I mean, Zane."

Cryptor raised an eyebrow. "You corrected yourself. You meant to say 'Cole', but you didn't want to admit it."

"I did not," Jay insisted.

Cryptor rolled his eyes. "Huh." He didn't sound convinced.

* * *

Jay _didn't_ want to admit he was worth less than Cole to the Overlord. Not after Cole took Nya from him with that stupid "Perfect Match" analysis. _It's gotta be a mismatch,_ he thought angrily. _**I've**_ _been dating Nya since I became a ninja, and_ _ **Cole**_ _only got interested in her after he found out._

But part of him doubted himself. _Maybe the machine is right,_ he thought, his anger melting. _Maybe I'm too playful and happy-go-lucky for Nya. Maybe Cole is her perfect match._

He stamped out these ideas. " **I'm** Nya's perfect match," he told himself.


	3. 2: My Chat With the Overlord

**What up, me peepz!? XD XD XD**

 **Sorry, I'm just soooo happy to be updating at long last! Even if it is the story I've been working on for nearly a year outside of FanFiction XD**

 **Sooo. . . here it is! :D Hope you like it!**

* * *

General Cryptor and the captured Jay reached the hundredth floor. The Overlord, or Golden Master, whatever you prefer, sat on a golden clawed throne, though Jay had seen it in mech form. Trust me, you wouldn't want to mess with it.

"I have brought Jay, Master," Cryptor said, bowing. "Bow, ninja," he hissed under his breath, forcing Jay down to one knee.

But Jay stood back up again just as quickly. "I'll never bow down to you," he told the Overlord, voice full of bold scorn, "no matter how many Nindroids push me down."

"I'm sure we can arrange that," the Overlord purred. With one whistle, five Nindroids hurried into the room. "Make this impudent ninja bow," he ordered.

The Nindroids tackled Jay, who, tied up, couldn't fight back. He was forced back down, this time to both knees, head bent down under the weight of the Nindroids. "Okay, scratch that," Jay muttered. In a louder voice, he said defiantly, "Maybe you can my physical self bow, but my spirit will never submit to you!"

"Your spirit will take a little coaxing," the Overlord agreed, "but in time, it too will succumb to my might and power. Nindroids, you are dismissed. Cryptor, you know what to do."

The Nindroids bowed, then they all marched out of the room, including Cryptor, leaving Jay, rendered completely defenseless, alone with the Golden Master. "Step forward," he ordered. "Or else I will make you do so much more painfully."

Having no choice, Jay stepped closer as best he could without tripping. His legs were somewhat bound together by the spare ropes pinning his arms to his sides. "What do you want with me? I don't have all night; I'm a busy ninja. Oh, and by the way, you won't get any information from me."

The Overlord's face twisted into a gruesome smile. "Very clever, hiding your true feelings under a mask of personality and. . . sarcasm. But I'm smarter than that, Jay. Even my general, Cryptor, is smarter than that. I can read your true feelings as openly as I can see your face. Which, by the way, is rather handsome. Not at all hard to see how some girls can like you."

Jay was sure the Overlord was bluffing, but he couldn't help being flattered. "Yeah, some girls. . ."

"One girl in particular, I've noticed," the Golden Master said nonchalantly. "What's her name now? _Nya?_ "

Jay flinched at the sound of her name. "No, not her. Ever since that stupid machine . . . " He clenched his fists and grit his teeth. "That dirt-clod jerk likes her now. She likes him back. End of story. I'm out of the picture."

"Nya prefers the Black Ninja over you?" the Overlord guessed. "Such a shame." He sighed regretfully. "You cared for her very deeply, I could see that."

"How could _you_ , an all-powerful spirit of darkness, know about love, or caring for anyone?" Jay spat.

"The way you protected her in what once was the final battle between good and evil," the Golden Master replied smoothly. "Ah, yes, Garmadon told me about that little encounter at the Celestial Clock," he said in reply to Jay's startled expression. "In fact, it was because of that little scenario that helped devise my decision on how to properly get rid of you five that time."

"But it failed," Jay said triumphantly. "We're not gone, and we're probably not gonna be any time soon."

"But are you sure you want that?" the Overlord asked.

Jay frowned. "Why wouldn't I want that? I want to survive, y'know. I've got a life outside of the ninja business."

"But your plans for what you were going to do after this all ended will probably change now," the Golden Master pointed out coolly.

"What do you mean?" Jay was once again confused by the Overlord's question.

"Think about it, my dear boy," the Overlord said. "Now that you say the girl you loved prefers Cole to you, your plans to propose and perhaps start a family with her have suddenly shifted in a different direction."

Jay spluttered, "How in Ninjago-"

"I don't have to be a good guy to read your thoughts, Jay," the Golden Master said calmly. "I know what love is, and I know what it can do. I don't have to experience it to know those things."

"The best way to know love _is_ to experience it, Mr. I'm-So-Evil-I-Know-Everything," Jay snapped.

The Overlord could see that Jay was beginning to fall apart. "But now, because you're still here, this little mishap happened, and now all your dreams are falling to ruin," he said sadly.

"But I'm still with my other teammates!" Jay said quickly. "I'm still friends with them, even if Cole stole Nya from me."

"Do you really think _they_ appreciate you, Jay?" the Overlord asked quietly.

"Of course they do!" But now, the Overlord's power had begun to do its work on Jay, who had been exposed to the Golden Master's aura of evil for almost a full fifteen minutes. Now, Jay was beginning to doubt himself. "Do they?"

"Think about it," the Golden Master said cunningly. "Zane is known as the smart one, the intelligent one, the one who comes up with all the answers. You are known as the somewhat dumb one, who doesn't catch on very quickly. Lloyd is the most powerful one, the Golden Ninja, the Ultimate Spinjitzu Master. You are the Ninja of Lightning, mostly called on for phone recharges or mechanical problems. Kai is famed for his fire in battle, the quickest-thinking, the fastest on his feet, the . . . good-looking one, I suppose. You are famed for . . . not very much in the fighting department. You have 'talents' in inventing, and as for being attractive . . . some might call you cute, but handsome is out of the question. And then there's Cole. He's the leader of the team, the strong one, the level-headed one. But he's not content with being in charge. He takes the only person who truly loves you for you who are, your stupid, childish, overall imperfect self, and makes her fall for him, the exact, perfect opposite of you. They do not appreciate you. They keep you around for laughs, comedic relief. You can never, and will never, live up to them."

Jay was falling under the Overlord's corruptive spell. "I will never live up to them," he muttered.

"You will never live up to them," the Overlord repeated slyly. "But with me, I can offer you the opportunity to prove yourself, to show them who's really the best. Not Lloyd. Not Zane. Not Kai. Not Cole. But you. Jay, Master of Lightning. And you can show Nya who she really deserves. Not a black-hearted cheater like the Master of Earth, but you, the one she loved from the start."

"How can you do that?" Jay asked. Even as he spoke, his physical appearance was starting to change. His eyes burned not sea-blue, but vivid red, his auburn hair was darkening, and his skin lost some of its color. His voice was altered as well, as if it was someone else speaking with a pre-recorded version of Jay's voice on a microphone.

"Join me in my battle to take over Ninjago," the Golden Master urged. "Bring your former comrades to me. Become part of my army. Serve me as your master. And when the battle is won, you will receive glory beyond your wildest dreams. Nya will love you once again, and you will stand beside me as my second-in-command. There's great power in you, Jay. Power that will protect the one you love, power that will gain you honor and respect. You want more power. I can give you that power. Join me. Accept my offer. "

As he spoke, the ropes that had been binding Jay fell away. The Overlord stretched out his hand in a gesture of welcome. "Join me, Master of Lightning," the Golden Master said. "Serve me as your master. What do you say?"


	4. 3: Where The Heck is Everyone?

**Hi, guys! Sorry I took so long; I was debating on whether or not this should be the next chapter or not, but I decided it was pretty good to keep y'all in suspense, so here it is!**

 **Thanks so much JayFan67, Guest, Puppy, ebony umbreon, Guest, and ponygirl009 for your comments on the last chapter! Glad I got ya hanging! XD I hope this satisfies you a little, but no promises XD**

 **So . . . enjoy!**

* * *

"Has anyone seen Jay?" Nya said worriedly. "He should be back from patrol duty by now."

"I haven't seen him," Lloyd said, concerned. "He hasn't come back?"

"No," Nya said. She held her Samurai X helmet under one arm, but she was contemplating putting it back on. "I should go look for him. What if something's happened to him?"

"No, _we_ should go looking for him," Zane said firmly. "We need every teammate we have, and the less of us there are, the weaker we are."

"And the more likely the Overlord will succeed in taking over Ninjago," Kai said decisively. He pulled up his mask. "Let's go."

Cole was hesitant. "What's your problem?" Lloyd demanded.

"Nothing," Cole said hurriedly. "Let's go." The other ninja gave him strange looks, but they shrugged it off.

"No vehicles," Lloyd said. "We'll attract too much attention."

"And if I remember correctly," Zane coughed, "we lost our vehicles to the Overlord's Spinjitzu tornado."

"That too." Nya glanced out the window. "Looks like we got company, guys!"

The ninja rushed over to the window. "It's just one Nindroid," Kai scoffed. "We can take him easy."

The Nindroid was making faces at them, mocking and jeering. "Come on out and get me!" he taunted. "Or are you too afraid of Nindroids? You're so cowardly all you ever do is hide in that temple and not even try to fight us anymore! The boredom is polluting the atmosphere out here!" He pretended to hold his nose and made small choking noises.

"That sardonic tin can is really getting on my nerves," Cole growled, clenching his fists.

"Let's get him!" Kai darted out the door and ran toward the Nindroid, Cole close behind. Zane frowned, but he sighed resignedly and followed his comrades out the temple door. Lloyd and Nya exchanged worried looks, but they too ran after their teammates toward the Nindroid.

The Nindroid seemed to be expecting the reaction his taunts provoked. But he turned and ran the other direction, away from the temple and into the city itself. "Talk about cowardly!" Kai shouted at the Nindroid. "What are you doing now?"

"Strategically backtracking!" the Nindroid yelled back, not looking over his shoulder.

"Looks like you're running away to me!" Cole retorted.

"His vocal patterns seem strangely familiar," Zane muttered, "though I'm unsure why."

"How can you tell one Nindroid's vocal patterns from another?" Lloyd asked in disbelief as the Nindroid rounded a corner. "With General Cryptor that makes sense, but with random Nindroids?"

"My analysis is suggesting that he's not a random Nindroid," Zane replied. "He reminds me of-"

Zane's answer was stifled by a Nindroid clamping an arm over his mouth. Zane was taken completely by surprise, and he didn't start yelling until it was too late. A second Nindroid gave Zane an electrical shock with a Taser gun, and he collapsed, senseless, onto the sidewalk. The two Nindroids bound the unconscious Zane with metal ropes, and sent a video feed back to their commander. "One Ninja caught, Lieutenant," one said.

"Good," the lieutenant replied under his breath, "he knows too much. Alert the others stationed along the path. Kai is next. Afterwards, head back to headquarters with Zane. You will receive further instruction from General Cryptor."

* * *

Leading his three other teammates, Kai ran after the Nindroid. The Nindroid taunted, "Why don't you try using your fire power? Or are you saving it for a fight in the next millennium? Granted you'll live long enough to see the new age! I don't know if you'll survive long after the Golden Master gives you your just desserts!"

Kai gritted his teeth and kept running, hands blazing with growing fire. "What's the matter?" the Nindroid called behind him mockingly. "Burned your tongue?"

"That's it!" Kai unleashed his fire, blasting after the Nindroid far ahead of his teammates. "I'm not letting a toaster with attitude get the better of me!"

He should have caught up with the Nindroid, but his aim was a little off and he slammed into a lamp-post, his fire burning out with a soft hiss. He fell, unconscious, into the arms of a cloaked Nindroid, who immediately ducked into a nearby alley as the other ninja ran past.

Like Zane, Kai was tied up and in the possession of another pair of Nindroids. "Two down, three more to go, Lieutenant," one of the Nindroids reported via video feed.

"You don't need to report back to _me_ every single time," the lieutenant replied exasperatedly. "Tell the next pair to report to Cryptor when they capture Lloyd. I'm in a bit of a hurry."

"Of course, Lieutenant," the other Nindroid said, bowing as the video feed clicked out.

* * *

Lloyd glanced around them as they ran after the Nindroid, who consistently ducked around corners, ran down alleys, and jumped from side-street to side-street as he tried to shake off the Ninja. "Uh, where did Kai and Zane go?" he asked worriedly.

"They probably just got lost down one of these side-streets," Cole replied, keeping a close eye on the Nindroid as they ran. "New Ninjago City is a bit more complicated than normal."

"But isn't it weird?" Lloyd persisted. "I mean, it was like one minute they were there, the next, they're gone. There's something strange going on-"

But he was cut off as a Nindroid caught him by the leg, and dragged him back. "HELP!" Lloyd yelled, but Cole and Nya were too far ahead to hear him. Another Nindroid hit Lloyd on the head, and the Green Ninja collapsed into a dead heap on the sidewalk. After binding up Lloyd, the Nindroids sent back a report to the lieutenant, but instead got General Cryptor. "Don't you metal-heads ever listen?" Cryptor snapped when they asked for the lieutenant. "The lieutenant sent a message warning those in his command not to report back to him, and as an officer, he should be respected. He said to report to me, and managed to rewire his feed so that you couldn't report to him, no matter how hard you try. Did you get Lloyd?"

"Yessir General Cryptor," the Nindroids reported hurriedly. "We're taking him back to headquarters now."

"Then get on with it!" Cryptor's face disappeared.

As one of the pair slung the senseless Lloyd over his shoulder, the other remarked, "The lieutenant is shrewd to come up with a plan like this, doncha think?"

"It does help that his tactical skills got somewhat of an advantage," the other admitted as they snuck into the shadows. "He is a little bit sensitive, though. Wonder why Cryptor respects him."

"Never heard of General Cryptor respecting anyone other than someone of higher rank than himself," the first said. "Lieutenant is lower a rank than general, I think. Gah, I'll have to check when we get back."

"If lieutenant is higher than general, don't mention it to Cryptor," the second advised, shifting Lloyd's weight. "He's going to hate the lieutenant if that's true. He's much younger than Cryptor, and if he managed to get the higher position, Cryptor's gonna have one heck of a tantrum."

* * *

Cole and Nya ran after the Nindroid, who seemed to be tiring out, often stopping for quick breathers before dashing away again. "I've never seen a Nindroid get tired before," Nya said, a little confused.

"That _is_ odd," Cole said, slowing down a little as the Nindroid leaned heavily against a wall, panting hard. "Come to think of it," he stopped running completely, "why didn't he enable his cloaking device before now? That could have lost us easily."

"Because I didn't _want_ to lose you," the Nindroid coughed. "Whew! Those high-speed chases can wear a droid out."

"You have got to be the quirkiest Nindroid I've ever met," Nya exclaimed.

The Nindroid looked her in the eye for just one moment. For one second, Nya thought she saw the Nindroid's one visible eye flicker from red to purple, but she figured she just imagined it. Then the Nindroid looked away and started to run again, this time at a trot. When he got a good distance away, the Nindroid stopped and glanced behind him. "Well? I thought you were chasing me!" he called. Then he darted around a corner and disappeared.

"Let's get that idiot toaster," Cole said, gritting his teeth as he ran forward after the Nindroid.

Nya hesitated. There was something about this Nindroid that unsettled her. It didn't seem . . . normal. She mentally shook herself. _That's ridiculous,_ she thought. _He's just more annoying than most Nindroids._ She ran after Cole, who was quickly catching up with the Nindroid.

The Nindroid had ran down a blocked alley, and was trying to find a place to hide when Cole caught him by the shoulders. "Gotcha!" he yelled triumphantly.

"You think so?" the Nindroid asked, and Cole didn't notice the tone of hatred in his voice. Then, he kicked Cole under the chin, and vanished, his cloaking device hiding him from sight.

"Where did he go?" Nya asked, skidding to a stop next to Cole, who was rubbing his sore jaw.

"Ow, that Nindroid can pack a good kick," Cole muttered, massaging his chin. "I managed to catch him for just one second, then he kicked me and disappeared. I guess he finally enabled his cloaking device."

"Then he can be anywhere by now!" Nya exclaimed, frustrated. "And we've not only lost Jay, but Zane, Kai, and Lloyd too!"

"Let's go," Cole said, taking her hand as he started to turn around. Nya's cheeks flushed involuntarily.

"You're not going anywhere, Ninja!" Where blank empty space was only seconds before, there were Nindroids, circling around the two warriors, cackling menacingly.

The last thing Nya remembered before she was knocked out was Cole shouting, then a yelp of pain as he was knocked unconscious with a powerful kick from a Nindroid. Then everything went black. . .


	5. Sneak Peek (Not Full Chapter! Sorry!) XP

**Well, this is annoying. I didn't want to resort to this, but I've got to.**

 **Howdy-doody everybodeez! I've been trying to update one of my Ninjago stories for weeks, and I end up having to stick up a preview for a chapter instead XP Sorry about that. I've been updating my _Lord of the Rings_ fanfics more frequently because I've finally hit upon a gold mine where I don't suffer from writer's block as badly (if you like _LotR_ , please go check them out!)**

 **This update's mainly because I've been wanting to let y'all know about my two-year FanFiction anniversary, which I've told some people, but not everybody.**

 **So, I've set up a forum (the link to it is on my profile), and I'd really appreciate it if you'd take a peep at it.**

 **Sooo . . . yeah. And don't be too surprised if you see this author's note, along with previews of other story chapters on some of my other stories.**

 **For your trouble, I've included the first part to Chapter 4 of _Plot Twist!_ **

* * *

"Ow. . . my head," Nya muttered. She tried to lift her hand to press her temples, but her arm refused to budge. Her arms were bound to her sides by black ropes, and peering down at her feet, she could see that her ankles were also tied together.

She was lying with her back up against a wall in a sleek prison cell. From her vantage point, she could see no windows in the eight-by-eight-foot space, but light was cast into the cell by glowing red squares built into the top corners of the twelve-foot-high walls, right up against the ceiling. Shining like watchful, threatening eyes, they cast an ominous bloody light over everything, and it gave Nya a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

She'd been stripped of her helmet and her weapons─but had her companions been taken away from her as well? Looking over to her left, she saw she was wrong. Cole and Lloyd lay slumped up against the wall beside her, arms and ankles bound with the same type of rope that restrained her.

Glancing to her right, she saw her brother, also bound, lying next to her. He was already awake and struggling fiercely against his ropes, but when he tried to summon his fire powers, not even a spark would materialize from his hands.

"I keep telling you, Kai─" On the samurai's far right, Zane was sitting up and watching the Fire Ninja's hopeless twisting "─these ropes are infused with Vengestone─our powers will not activate until we are no longer in contact with them."

"And _I_ keep telling _you_ ─I can do this!" Kai snapped, twisting his body so hard his head slammed into the wall behind him. " _Yeow!_ "

"Sorry, big brother, that's not gonna happen anytime soon." Nya spoke somewhat faintly, still dizzy from the blow she had taken.

Kai stopped when he saw his sister was awake. "You all right, Sis?" he asked, a little worriedly.

"A little woozy, and I have this awful headache, but other than that, I'm just dandy," Nya replied. She faltered. "Dandy" was a term Jay used a lot. And after she and Cole had held hands─for the _second_ time─she felt a slight pang of guilt for borrowing her boyfriend's phraseology.

. . . . Was he still even her boyfriend? Nya's headache worsened at the thought of the perplexing question, and she tried to clear the problem from her mind, but it lingered there, like a bitter aftertaste, in the recesses of her subconscious.

Just then, Cole finally came around, slowly sitting up and blinking his dark brown eyes. Nya always thought his eyes were a bit too intense for her.

Cole looked at her, and the first expression on his now alert face was that of concern. "You okay, Nya?"

"Yeah." Nya felt her face flush─what kind of embarrassment was this? "How about you?"

"Good, considering I nearly had my teeth knocked out by that Nindroid." Cole winced as he spoke; his wounded jaw was still obviously hurting him. "Where did he learn to kick like that? I've never seen a Nindroid that quick."

"That toaster owes me big-time for that 'burned your tongue' jab," Kai growled, sitting up straighter so he could look past his sister at Cole. "Is Greenie awake yet?"

"Don't call me that," Lloyd mumbled, who had just been stirring from unconsciousness when Kai made his inquiry.

"Yep, he's awake." Kai's half-hearted smile looked a bit rueful.


End file.
